The manufacturing of pneumatic tires for motor vehicles of nearly all sizes entails the steps of creating the carcass and attaching thereto the tread and sidewalls, which are made of uncured rubber. The combination of carcass, tread and sidewalls, prior to curing of the rubber, is called a ‘green tire.’ The final step in the manufacture of a tire is the insertion of the green tire into a tire mold, wherein the tire is heated to a sufficiently high temperature to vulcanize the tire. The tire is then removed from the mold and the manufacturing process is complete.
Whereas the manufacturing of tires for automobiles, even large automobiles such as sport utility vehicles, is a straightforward process involving relatively light-weight green tires, the manufacture of large tires for industrial or large off-road type vehicles of the sort used in earth moving and construction work entails the handling of very large green tires weighing hundreds of pounds. The loading of such massive tires, in the green-tire stage of production, into the standard two-part tire molds having an upper portion and a lower portion can result in damage to the green tires during the loading process, because the diametrical and circumferential dimensions of the mold are so close to each green tire being loaded into the mold as to result in interference. Thus it is desired to have an improved tire mold which allows for ease of loading and unloading of the green tire into and out of the tire mold.